Flynn December Talks Target the South

December 3, 2012

Look out, Dixie, Council for Secular Humanism executive director Tom Flynn (i. e., yours truly) will do a lecture tour across the South just in time for some people's favorite holiday, December 7 - 10. I'll be speaking on church-state separation in Chattanooga and Tuscaloosa, and delivering my barn-burning illustrated talk "The Trouble with Christmas" in Knoxville and Atlanta.

Here are summaries of the talks:

“A RADICAL TAKE ON CHURCH-STATE SEPARATION,” or “THE NAKED PUBLIC SQUARE”
Think way, way beyond what current law allows—what kind of long-term future should American secularists strive for? A future defined by faith-based initiatives, or a naked public square? One where religious expression resounds through public institutions and public spaces, or where thoughtful people confine such things to the private realm? Tom Flynn offers a personal argument why secularists should dream big and strive for a tomorrow in which public spaces truly are “religion-free zones.” Agree or disagree, you won’t want to miss this engaging and provocative presentation.

“THE TROUBLE WITH CHRISTMAS,” Illustrated Edition
Tom Flynn has been recounting the history of the year-end holidays—and offering his rollicking rationale for why secular humanists should just sit the merriment out—since his book The Trouble with Christmas was published in 1993. Now Tom has reconceived his talk as a lavish PowerPoint presentation with almost 300 slides. He’ll examine where our most treasured holiday traditions came from—from the Christ Child to Santa Claus, from the wassail bowl to the tannenbaum—and ask whether there’s still time to send them back. Don’t miss it!

Here are the logistical details:

CHATTANOOGA
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 7, 6:00 P.M.
“A Radical Take on Church-State Separation”
Co-sponsored by the Secular Student Alliance of the University of Tennessee–Chattanooga and the Chattanooga Freethought Association)
University of Tennessee–Chattanooga
UTC University Center Auditorium
615 McCallie Avenue
Chattanooga TN 37403
For more info, visit www.facebook.com/events/355345597895447/.

KNOXVILLE
SATURDAY, DECEMBER 8, 1:00 P.M.
“The Trouble with Christmas”
Co-sponsored by the Rationalists of East Tennessee
Auditorium, Goins Administration Building
Pellissippi State Community College
10915 Hardin Valley Road
Knoxville, TN 37933-0990
For more info, phone (865) 694-6400 or visit www.rationalists.org.

ATLANTA
SUNDAY, DECEMBER 9, 1:00 P.M.
“The Trouble with Christmas”
Co-sponsored by the Atlanta Freethought Society
Atlanta Freethought Hall
4775 North Church Lane South East
Smyrna, GA 30080
For more info, visit www.atlantafreethought.org.

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Tom Flynn is executive director of the Council for Secular Humanism and editor of its flagship magazine, Free Inquiry. A founding coeditor of the newsletter Secular Humanist Bulletin, he designed and directs the Council's museum at the Dresden, N.Y., birthplace of 19th century agnostic orator Robert Green Ingersoll. He is also vice president for media at the Center for Inquiry and director of its audio-visual production arm, Inquiry Media Productions. He has written or edited four books including The New Encyclopedia of Unbelief (Prometheus, 2007). He is executive producer of the Council for Secular Humanism's 2013 video miniseries, American Freethought.